


Tales of an Age Long Past

by Twilight_Enterprises



Series: For Once, I'm Giving Twilight A Break [1]
Category: Linked Universe - Fandom, The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms
Genre: Canonical Character Death, Gen, Guess who it's from, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Mentions of Termina, Reading about the beginning of the Downfall Timeline, Swearing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-06
Updated: 2020-06-06
Packaged: 2021-03-04 02:46:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,022
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24576277
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Twilight_Enterprises/pseuds/Twilight_Enterprises
Summary: The group finds themselves in Legend's Hyrule, where some old friends show him books written in the language of the Hero of Time. Legend isn't happy with what he reads.
Relationships: Irene & Link (Legend of Zelda, Legend & Time (Linked Universe)
Series: For Once, I'm Giving Twilight A Break [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1788211
Comments: 3
Kudos: 149





	Tales of an Age Long Past

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! This is the first work I've ever posted, so... feedback is appreciated?

In Legend’s Hyrule, there was a lot of mystery surrounding the Hero of Time’s legacy. No one really knew what happened after his quest that brought about the return of Ganon. There were stories though, legends, about the nearly-forgotten, generally-despised Fallen Hero, whose proper title had been disregarded when Ganon killed him. Legend had grown up hearing stories of The Failure. His uncle tried to paint the Fallen Hero in a more positive light, saying he was just a boy and there was no way he could have stood a chance against Ganon. So, unlike everyone else his age, Legend didn’t hate the Fallen Hero. During his quest, though, he grew to. Why couldn’t the bastard have just finished the damn job? Instead, he made a royal bloody mess of things and left it all for Legend to clean up.

When the group of Heroes suddenly found themselves in Legend’s Hyrule, more specifically outside his house, he was simultaneously annoyed and relieved. He was also - secretly, of course - kind of worried that the heroes who restored their Hyrules to their former glory would look around and think he did a shoddy job. In truth, he hadn’t. His Hyrule, as messed up as it still was, was the same as it had been when he went on his first quest. He knew he had no reason to worry, as Hyrule and Wild’s worlds were quite literally post-apocalyptic…

“Legend! Are you paying attention?” Time asked.

“Hmm?” No, no he wasn’t.

Time sighed. “Four found a note on your pillow. Looks like it’s from someone named Irene?”

Legend face palmed. “She’s a friend of mine, probably giving me an earful for some shit or another. She’s charming like that.”

“Ooh, Legend has a lady friend?” Warriors said, waggling his eyebrows suggestively.

“Bloody hell, Warriors. No, if the way she treats me is anything to go by, she only tolerates me because I saved her life once.”

Warriors huffed as Time handed Legend the note. It was folded in half with the words “To Link, from Irene, You’d better answer this, shithead” written on the outside. He snorted. Classic Irene.

_Dear Link,_

_You’d better have a good explanation for being away for so long this time. Grandmother is getting worried (though I don’t know why, you’re perfectly capable of saving your own ass). Anyway, I’ve enchanted this letter to let me know when you’ve opened it, so there’s no way you’ll be able to avoid me once you have. I’ve found some old books I think might interest you - they are about the Fallen Hero. I figured you’re a better judge of whether or not they’re credible. I can’t read it all, either. A lot of it is written in an older form of Hylian, one I never learned, because it’s something even Grandmother never learned. If you’re interested, Sahasrahla and I have been researching. Once you’ve read this letter, meet me at Kakariko ASAP. Got it?_

_You suck,_

_Irene_

“Well, it looks like Irene wants us to go to Kakariko. I would stay here longer, were it not for the fact that it’s Irene, and she is more than capable of murdering me in various ways if I piss her off,” Legend said. “It’ll only take us about three hours if we go slow, one and a half if we hurry. Knowing Irene, we should hurry.”

Time shrugged. “It’s your Hyrule. I trust you.”

Legend was going to pretend those words didn’t make him feel warm inside.

Irene wasn’t one for affection, but she decided Legend was worth a hug. It was kind of nice, even if she did slap him immediately after and scolded him for being away for so long.

Warriors tried to flirt with her, but she shot him a look that would have made Ganon cower in fear. Needless to say, the flirting stopped.

“Link, come on, you’ve gotta come look at these books! Sahasrahla is losing his mind over them!” Irene chirped, grabbing Legend's hand and dragging him towards one of the houses.

Legend chuckled, glancing back at the other heroes. “Do whatever you want, just don’t get lost,” he called.

Sahasrahla’s house was a mess. There was paper everywhere, mostly his notes, and a stack of four open books on his desk.

“Sweet Hylia, man, you’re gonna go mad like this,” Legend said.

Sahasrahla looked up and smiled. “Welcome back, Link. Here; see what you can make of this volume.” He passed him the book on top.

Legend frowned as he looked it over, running his fingers up the spine. “This is written in the language of the Hero of Time,” he said.

“Who?”

Legend gave Irene a withering look. “You know, the Hero of Time? The guy before the Fallen Hero? Fought Ganon?”

“...No.”

His frown deepened. He opened the book, scanning the table of contents until he found something of interest. _The Death of the Hero._ Flipping to the right page, he skimmed over the lines of frivolous language until he read a line that made his heart stop. _The Hero of Time, whose actions have already become the stuff of legend to the people of Hyrule, fell to the blade of the Evil King Ganondorf. We the Sages were forced to seal the demon in the Sacred Realm, for fear of him using the full might of the Triforce to raze Hyrule to the ground. Our hearts went out to the mourning Princess Zelda, who lost her piece of the Triforce and her friend in one fell swoop. It is sheer luck she did not lose her own life as well._

The book fell to the floor. Legend stared unseeing at the empty air where it had been, the words running circles around his head. _The Hero of Time fell to Ganondorf’s blade._ That couldn’t be possible. Time was just outside in the village, he couldn’t have died - and it wasn’t like he was going to fight Ganon in the future. The Hero of Time fought Ganon when he was seventeen, and Time was at least thirty-seven, physically. Unless…

He grabbed another book, aimlessly flipping through the pages until he found something. _The Hero’s time travelling split Hyrule into three eras - the one where he lived his life out as a child, the one he abandoned when he returned to his childhood, and the one where he lost his life to Ganondorf. I have not told the Hero any of this, however. He will never forgive me, as I was the one to send him back using the Ocarina of Time. He will feel like he failed in the timeline he abandoned, and he will know that he did fail in the timeline where he died. I pray that he will never know._

Legend scoffed. “Unbelievable,” he muttered. No matter what time it was, Zelda's handwriting always looked the same.

“What’s unbelievable?” Irene asked.

“I understand now why you don’t know who the Hero of Time is. In this timeline he didn’t exist.”

“I - what? What does that mean?”

He scowled. “It means the past princess of Hyrule played with the flow of time and screwed us all over.”

“...Oh.”

Legend shrugged, slamming the book closed and tossing it carelessly to the floor. “Fuck Time.” He stormed out the door.

“Legend?” Of course it had to be the Old Man. “You okay?”

“Fuck you.”

“What.”

Irene followed him out a moment later, watching in mild concern as Legend disappeared into the streets of Kakariko. “Oh, for fuck’s sake,” she groaned. “‘Oh, I’m Link, the great Hero of Legend! I’ve saved Hyrule more times than I can count on one hand! I can translate books written in Ancient Hylian and then not tell anyone what’s in them, instead choosing to walk away and brood!’ Ugh, some hero he is.”

“Ancient Hylian?” Time asked.

Irene nodded. “Yeah, he said something about the language of the Hero of Time?”

“I can probably read it then,” he offered.

She shrugged. “Sure.”

Irene led Time inside, handing him the two books Legend had read. She’d opened them to the same pages so Time could see what had made Legend so mad. Time scanned them quickly and then sighed, running a hand down his face.

“Son of a bitch. I can’t… I can’t translate these. The words are too close to home for me. I know someone else who might be able to write a transcript for you, though, if you want.”

Irene frowned, gauging his expression. “You know… if what’s in these books has made two of you burly-type guys react like this, maybe we should just wait until Link feels comfortable sharing.”

Sahasrahla nodded in agreement. “Please do not trouble yourself, young man.”

Time was out the door almost before the sentence was finished. He ran down the streets of Kakariko, looking for Legend. He found him sitting on a stump just outside the village, sharpening his sword. Time knew Legend was aware of his presence; the younger hero was just actively ignoring him. He didn’t say anything, waiting for Legend to.

“I hated you, you know,” Legend said finally. “I hated the Fallen Hero for failing, for letting Ganon win. It left Hyrule in a bloody mess, a mess that I had to clean up. It’s not like you were incompetent, you were seventeen. That’s older than Wind was when he stabbed Ganondorf in the head.”

Time was silent for a moment before responding. “Just because I was seventeen physically doesn’t mean I was seventeen mentally.”

Legend stopped sharpening his sword. He’d forgotten about the mental discrepancies provided by time travel. “How - how old were you mentally?” He looked up at his elder, who wore the expression of someone attempting to remember something very specific.

“Nine, maybe ten,” he said eventually. “I can’t remember how long my quest took, given the temporal shenanigans. Might’ve been a year, might only have been six months. Including the time travel, it was probably more like ten years, but no one could perceive that.”

“You fought Ganon when you were mentally nine years old?!”

Time shrugged. “Yeah.”

“Goddesses, no wonder you died.”

“So… do you still hate me?”

Legend shook his head. “Not you, no. I think at this point it’s safe for me to say this without getting smited: I really fucking hate Hylia.”

Time snorted. “Me too, Legend. Me too.”

“...In the other timeline, the one where you went back to your childhood, did you… did you at least have a happy life?”

“Ha! No,” he said, laughing bitterly. “I went to Termina and fought the moon.”

“Wait, you were serious about that?” Legend demanded. “I thought that was a joke!”

“Farore knows I wish it was, but sadly it wasn’t. The moon was falling, signaling the end of the world in three days, and I, a physically eleven-year-old kid, was tasked with saving it. High expectations, much?”

“Did you do it? Save the world in three days, I mean?”

Time shook his head. “Not three days, no.”

“Then how-” Legend broke off as Time patted the ocarina on his hip.

“I’m the time traveller hero, remember?”

“Right… how long did it take you, then?”

Time shrugged, clearly doing some mental math. “Maybe… around 275 days? But that’s just the time it took me to save the world from the falling moon, it doesn’t include the time I spent doing other shit like rescuing a little girl from aliens.”

“What the fuck, Time?”

“Eh, long story. All in all, I probably spent about three years in Termina, but because of the constant resetting of the three-day cycle, the only thing that aged was my mind.”

“...Can I ascend to the heavens and murder Hylia myself?”

“...Can I join you?” Legend burst out laughing, soon joined by Time. They laughed until neither of them could breathe and tears were streaming out of their eyes. That was how the others found them, with Warriors making his presence known in his own special way.

“The fuck is so funny that you two little shits have pissed yourselves laughing?”

That only made them laugh harder.


End file.
